Social media can be a great tool for everyone, including world famous athletes. However, social media can also get them in some real trouble. Whether it is posting questionable things, being on during games or more, athletes really need to watch their usage on social media. Here are five times where athletes just should’ve kept the phone in their pocket.
1. Larry Johnson
(source: zimbio.com)
Johnson is a former Chiefs running back who found himself in very hot water on Twitter. Following a loss to the Chargers, Johnson took to Twitter where he then insulted his own Head Coach, which is never a good idea. This led to an interaction he then had with a fan defending the coach, whom Johnson then later called a homophobic slur. He later apologized for the rant and hateful speech, but it didn’t matter as the tweets still lost him his job and he never really found success anywhere else.
2. Rashard Mendenhall
(source: manjr.com)
This is without a doubt one of the biggest examples of an athlete facing backlash on an ill advised tweet. Following the announcement of the death of Osama Bin Laden, Mendenhall took to twitter and did something he really shouldn’t have. He decided to try and tackle the topic of the September 11th attacks. Not only did he seem to defend and excuse Bin Laden, but he also questioned the entire attacks, obviously offending millions. He soon deleted the tweets, but it didn’t matter, the damage was done.
3. Johnny Manziel
(source: chatsports.com)
Manziel really should look into completely getting off of social media and getting his life together, before he completely loses his chance at ever playing in the NFL again. His problem isn’t tweeting or instagramming questionable things, it is simply the fact he always appears to show up in other people’s posts partying and boozing on bye weeks or even weeks when he just wasn’t playing. In addition to this, he has been caught favoriting tweets during games while he is on the bench, which is a big no no. He really needs to isolate himself from everyone for a while and get better.
4. Chipper Jones
(source: bleacherreport.com)
While he was an active player, Chipper Jones was without a doubt best known for his success on the field, but is now being remembered by a whole new generation for an extremely ill-advised tweet he made that didn’t sit well with anybody. In early 2015, and in response to the horrific Sandy Hook shootings in 2012 where 26 people lost their lives, Jones sent a tweet that suggested that he thought the FBI made up the incident, which is just absurd. Of course, there was huge backlash to this that ultimately led him to apologize multiple times.
5. Curt Schilling
(source: awfulannouncing.com)
I don’t know what is happening to this guy over the past couple of years, but something is up. This guy is one of the best examples of a former athlete that really needs to give himself a break on the ol’ social media accounts. Schilling has gone on many rants and done so many questionable things on Twitter it is hard to pick just one. Perhaps the most offensive was when he compared Muslims to Nazis. His tweets and social media presensce has not only cost him his reputation, but also a job as an announcer with ESPN.
